How Michael Organ Weaponised the Family Court... and Sean Plunket
The subject of Mister Organ tried to do what he’s done before: weaponise and manipulate the court system. This time, he failed.
Hi,
Today’s newsletter is something I’ve wanted to report for ages, but I have been waiting on a New Zealand judge to make a ruling. That ruling has been made — so here we go.
Enjoy.
PS: Mister Organ is currently out on Netflix in the US, New Zealand and Australia. It’s also on places like Amazon Prime and the Apple Store — and you may find it on blu-ray and DVD in the US and NZ/Oz. If you are elsewhere — I suggest a VPN.
Two Police Officers Knock on My Door
On November 4 last year, I was in my apartment in New Zealand when two police officers knocked on my door.
I was back in Aotearoa to promote Mister Organ — a documentary about a man (Michael Organ) who has previously manipulated the court system to get what he wants.
The film was due to have its New Zealand premiere in three days.
I opened the door, and the two officers served me with a temporary protection order made by the Family Court, which included an order to attend an non-violence programme. I had not been violent in any way towards the person named in the court order, so I knew it was unjustified.
Now the thing about Family Court proceedings is that they are notoriously confidential. All the names involved are heavily suppressed. I’d go so far as to say violating suppression in Family Court cases is taken even more seriously than other courts in New Zealand. This is partly because the Family Court often involves kids — vulnerable young children — stuck in horrific situations.
Put this another way: as a journalist, you might be tempted to push suppression on a juicy court case — but when it comes to the Family Court you don’t dare push a fucking thing. Those names stay under lock and key.
I felt annoyed, because after five years of making Mister Organ, I knew who was behind all this, but I wasn’t allowed to talk about it.
The weird thing though? Well, New Zealand broadcaster Sean Plunket had already started talking about it.
He’d actually gotten those Family Court documents before I had.
